Index to London Underground History

IMPORTANT: I have no first hand sources, such as official records or contemporary papers.
All I got is books, diagrams, web sites and videotapes.

Most dates can be found in Douglas Rose's excellent "The London Underground, A Diagrammatic History"

Period   Main event(s).

    -1859  The first tunnels under the Thames.

1860-1869  The first two companies opened their lines, Metropolitan and Metropolitan District.

1870-1879  The first (unsuccessful) tube: The Tower Subway.

1880-1889  Metropolitan and Metropolitan District extensions out to the NW and SW suburbs, respectively.

1890-1899  The first (successful and/or electric) tube: City & South London Railway. Waterloo & City opened.

1900-1909  Five lines opened: Central, Northern City, Bakerloo, Piccadilly and Charing Cross Euston & Hampstead, now part of Northern.

1910-1919  Bakerloo reached Watford. East London line as we know it today opened.

1920-1929  Northern line extensions.

1930-1939  Piccadilly line extensions.

1940-1949  Central line extensions.

1950-1959  Not much happened, due to financial restrictions after the war.

1960-1969  Victoria line opened.

1970-1979  Jubilee line opened.

1980-1989  Bakerloo line contracted and extended.

1990-      Jubilee line Docklands extension opened.


References

The scope of this publication

Unanswered questions

To first page             To Trains Page

Related Sites:

Transport for London official home page

Clive Feather's UndergrounD Line Guides

London Underground Railway Society

Douglas Rose's historical web site

This page updated 2007-07-26